“So you took this one, huh?” said Uncle Kevin, striding into the doorway and leaning against the jamb.
“Yeah,” I said, turning from the window and feeling suddenly self-conscious. He didn’t say which room to take, so I just picked one I liked. “It’s ok and everything, right?”
“Sure,” he said non-comittally. I don’t think he cared that I took this room, but it was a change having someone else around.
And then then my stomach rumbled. Lunch was an airport double-cheese burger that cost four times as much as it should, and that was five hours ago. Uncle Kevin grinned. “You must be hungry. I think they heard that one down the street.” I shrugged. “Anyways, let’s go downstairs and order some pizza.”
I followed him down the narrow half-spiral staircase. It was smaller than I remember and I wondered how I ever ran up it so quickly without losing body parts. On the other hand, Uncle Kevin seemed much larger. He wasn’t fat, but muscular, and built like a baseball player. He still wore glasses and a baseball cap, and his face still seemed a bit too angular, though the goatee and the mustache helped soften the effect. He had managed to stay single despite the ribbing he got at every family reunion.
He moved aside some work papers that covered every countertop, shelf, and appliance to fish out the phone. With one finger and one button, he dialed the pizza place. That didn’t surprise me. He had always been the consummate bachelor, the “cool uncle”, and I guess he always would be.
“Don’t mind the mess, Chris.” he said, once we had finished ordering. “Business has been good.”
Glancing at the papers, most of which were order forms and receipts, I nodded. “Looks like it.”
“That’s the advantage of being in oil and gas. No matter what happens, people like heat and power. Natural gas, kerosene, oil — we’ve got them covered.”
He stretched out a bit and then pointed to a tall erasable notepad on the refrigerator door. “Oh, and that’s the list.” He looked at me with a half-serious expression, waiting for the standard reply.
“You said The List,” I said.
“That’s right. That is The List — the list of all the stuff I need to do but haven’t gotten around to. Now it’s your list.”
I sighed and ambled over to the refrigerator. Sure enough, at the very top was “Mow the backyard.”
“And I did think about getting a maid or a handyman or someone like that, but that’s expensive.”
I sighed. I had forgotten about that. Uncle Kevin knew how to pinch a penny. That’s why he was living in this house — stately in an antique sort of way — but lacking in many modern anemities, like enough wall outlets. It also didn’t hurt that the town made it very attractive for people to live in these older homes rather than raze them or let them become dilapidated.
A loud knock scattered my thoughts and made me think again about my stomach. I clenched my muscles, hoping that would stop the growling if it struck. Uncle Kevin made his way to the door where he chatted with the delivery guy, showed his Frequent Pizza discount card, and finally brought dinner back inside.
We cleared off the dining room table, because it had less mess than the other countertops, and after a quick blessing, we finally got to eat. Uncle Kevin had drawn back the drapes on the large front windows, so that we’d have something to look at besides the clutter and each other. It was my third slice of pizza when I noticed someone walking down the sidewalk.
She was not too tall and not too short, with dark hair in curls and arms wrapped around a dull silver urn. I couldn’t see her eyes from so far away, but she looked fragile, somehow, like she was looking for something that she had lost.
Maybe it was the lull in the conversation, or maybe Uncle Kevin had noticed that I was staring out the window. “Do you want to know who she is?” he asked, teasing me.
I really didn’t want to blush, but I felt the heat rise to my cheeks anyway. “Sure,” I said, trying not to sound eager.
“She’s Kirandra.” And with that name, I knew that I wanted to meet her. Uncle Kevin took another bite of pizza. “Different. Her whole family is unusual. They run an antique and rarities business. Pretty successful, too.”
Then he burped and looked thoughtful. Outside, it was now dusk.
“I know we didn’t talk much about why you’re here and that’s ok,” he said. I just continued looking out the window.
“But this was a good idea and I hope it all works out for your folks.”
I nodded, and said to the darkening world, “Me too.”
He did have a nice TV, so we spent a while watching various shows before I headed off to bed. It had been a long day and I was more tired than usual. The bed was comfortable though, and as soon as I shut my eyes, the whole day replayed itself as if in fast-forward. My last thoughts were of the mysterious girl with her hands wrapped around a dull silver urn.
